News|Woman held captive for 10 days by someone she met on FACEBOOK

A 29-year-old woman took a bus from North Dakota to St. Paul to meet a man she’d met online-Ryan Marcelle Abernatha (also known as Ryan Williams). But the would-be relationship turned into a hostage situation during which she was repeatedly assaulted, according to charges filed this week in Ramsey County District Court according to Twin Cities News.

What began as a “nice” conversation on Facebook quickly turned into a 10-day nightmare for a North Dakota woman at the hands of a St. Paul man who held her captive and tried to strangle her.

That’s what Ramsey County prosecutors say Ryan Marcelle Abernatha’s alleged crimes include, according to the felony criminal complaint against him.

Ryan Albernatha
(Photo: Ramsey County Jail)The victim, identified in court documents only as “A.M.O.”, is said to have endured more than a week of verbal and physical abuse, during which time the defendant refused to let her leave his apartment, she told investigators.

The charges say A.M.O. met the 40-year-old Abernatha online (adding that he seemed “nice” from his messages) and subsequently traveled by bus to meet him in St. Paul. Abernatha later told authorities that he and A.M.O. “planned to have a sexual relationship once she arrived.” But according to prosecutors, things took a dark turn instead. A.M.O. said that Abernatha quickly started “ordering her around,” demanded that she not say anything if they left the apartment, and wouldn’t let her eat. At one point after a verbal exchange, the defendant “became extremely violent,” strangled A.M.O. and pushed her against a wall, forcing her to vomit and see “stars,” according to her statements. She also reported that he blocked his door with a two-by-four and “other objects” to prevent her from leaving, though she did manage a couple of unsuccessful escape attempts. The abuse carried on “every day,” the charges say, and only ended when A.M.O. was finally able to send a Facebook message to a friend, who contacted police. Abernatha, who has “no known Qualified Domestic Violence Related Offense convictions,” is charged with making terroristic threats and domestic assault by strangulation.

Published by Women With Gifts International

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17 thoughts on “News|Woman held captive for 10 days by someone she met on FACEBOOK”

good thing she survived a friend of my younger sister would often do the same thing would me them in a public place and all as well as tell her family who she was meeting with ..well this person used another name and had encrypted his server ..she had a family member drop her off to a public place and he picked her up …..her family didn’t hear from her after that …authorities found her body two years later in a wooded area in Georgia… 😦 the internet and social media can and is a dangerous place to meet people

Thats so horrible.. Yes we’re glad that’s she’s safe. People go to meet people all the time that they don’t know. (i.e. Ebay and Craigslist ) Noone deserve to die because of their decisions.Thank you for sharing your thoughts. Have a beautiful week

what is even more troubling than this story are the comments ” i hope shes safe” oh my gosh that man needs to be put in jail” etc…this foolish woman took a bus to have sex with a stranger!!!! da heck is wrong with you?…and you women on here have the nerve to say the man has a mental disorder….how about they BOTH have a disorder man and woman….woman is crazier if you ask me. Took a bus to have sex…how desperate are you….

Andre first thank you for sharing your thoughts on this issue. Its agreed that both parties could have thought this through a little more-both male and female. Now let’s look at this situation in a different way.

Lets say that the lady went to a business meeting of a colleague she didnt know.Would people still feel she was ignorant…Probably not..

If this lady would have met this guy and married, had children and lived happily ever after..Would people still judge her…Probably not.

The reason we say that “we’re glad she’s safe” because people should be victimized in any way unless they agree to it.
Thanks again for reading our article and sharing your thoughts.

I thought that all the horrible stories we have heard regarding online predators would make most people extremely carefully about meeting up with strangers in unknown surrounding. Thank goodness she’s alright, I can only hope that people will learn from her story

Yes we hear a lot of stories and warnings about online dating but women feel so comfortable with dating and meeting people online because the person they meet acts like the perfect fantasy of a man. Most women want a man that is financially stable,attractive and with best friend traits and online people are able to deliver all of those traits.

Thank you so much for reading and sharing your thoughts.Have a beautiful weekend. 😉

This is why I posted this Article:
Assuming that FB is some sort of pre screening for good character is ludicrous!
This young lady made several mistakes… using the internet to meet someone, trusting a stranger, traveling out of state without letting someone know, going into a strange man’s home, and being plain naive for her own good!